WARNINGS: light teasing and banter, minor jealousy, second-hand embarrassment, emotional tension, group chaos
A/N: there's no double standards in this fic, as there is in the real world kpop✌️. en-joy
✧･ﾟ:* ✧ *:･ﾟ✧･ﾟ:* ✧ *:･ﾟ✧･ﾟ:* ✧ *:･ﾟ✧･ﾟ:* ✧ *:･ﾟ✧
The first thing you learned about Yang Jungwon was that he was annoying.
Not in a loud way.
Not in a dramatic way.
In the worst way possible.
“You’re holding the mic wrong,” Jungwon said calmly, eyes glued to his phone.
You froze. “I am not.”
“You are.”
You turned to him slowly. “You’re literally the shortest person in this room. Why are you correcting me.”
The room went silent.
Ni-ki choked on his water.
Sunoo gasped like he’d just witnessed a murder.
Jay muttered, “Oh this is gonna be good.”
Jungwon looked up.
Stared at you.
Then smiled.
A small, dangerous smile.
“Say that again,” he said pleasantly.
You crossed your arms. “Short. King.”
Sunghoon physically backed away.
Jungwon stood up. Slowly. Deliberately.
For a moment, you thought he was going to argue.
Instead, he walked closer.
Too close.
You refused to move. This was a principle thing.
He tilted his head. “And yet,” he said softly, “you’re the one whose heart rate just spiked.”
“…What?”
He tapped the smartwatch on your wrist.
You looked down.
128 bpm.
Betrayal.
Sunoo lost it. “HELP—”
You yanked your wrist back. “That’s because you’re invading my personal space!”
“Then tell your heart that,” Jungwon replied.
He walked away.
Just like that.
Jay blinked. “Since when did the leader have rizz?”
Ni-ki shook his head. “It’s always the quiet ones.”
You stood there, cheeks burning, brain short-circuiting.
Because here was the problem:
Yang Jungwon wasn’t just annoying.
He was annoyingly observant, annoyingly calm and annoyingly always there when you were tired.
And worst of all—
You were starting to look for him in every room.
--------
Jungwon started avoiding you the next day.
Not obviously.
Not dramatically.
Which somehow made it worse.
He still nodded when he saw you. Still listened during practice. Still corrected Ni-ki gently and laughed when Sunoo exaggerated a story.
Just—
not you.
You noticed it during dance practice when you messed up a step and instinctively looked toward him.
Nothing.
No quiet correction. No calm “try again.”
He was helping Jake instead.
Your chest did that stupid tight thing.
“Okay, break!” Jay announced.
You grabbed your water bottle and headed for the corner, telling yourself you were being ridiculous. Jungwon didn’t owe you attention. You weren’t—anything.
Still, when he walked past you without a word, you blurted, “Wow. So now you’re pretending I don’t exist?”
He stopped.
Slowly turned.
The room went quiet again. The others loved silence before chaos.
“I’m not,” Jungwon said.
“Really?” you shot back. “Because yesterday you were basically monitoring my pulse and today you won’t even look at me.”
Ni-ki whispered, “This feels like a couple fight.”
“We are not a couple,” you snapped at the same time Jungwon said, “I was giving you space.”
You frowned. “Why would I need space?”
He hesitated. Just for a second. Enough for you to catch it.
“Because,” he said carefully, “you don’t like when I get close.”
The words hit harder than expected.
“I was joking,” you said. Quieter. “Yesterday.”
Jungwon studied your face like he was deciding whether to believe you.
Then he sighed. “You joke when you’re nervous.”
“…You don’t know that.”
“You twist your ring when you are,” he said. “And you get louder.”
Your hand dropped instantly.
Sunoo slowly sat down on the floor. “I feel like I’m intruding on something intimate.”
Jay dragged him away by the sleeve.
Jungwon stepped closer again, but this time not teasing, not smug. Just… him.
“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable,” he said. “So tell me when to stop.”
Your heart betrayed you again, thudding too fast.
“You don’t,” you said. “Make me uncomfortable.”
His eyes softened.
“Oh.”
That single word somehow felt louder than the earlier arguments.
From that moment, things shifted.
Not dramatically.
Not officially.
But Jungwon started sitting next to you again. Handing you snacks without asking. Waiting until you finished before leaving rooms.
Late one night, you found him alone in the practice room, music low, movements slower than usual.
“You’re still here?” you asked.
He glanced over. “Couldn’t sleep.”
You sat against the mirror beside him. Comfortable silence settled in.
After a while, he said, “You called me short on purpose.”
You smiled. “You deserved it.”
He hummed. “You also smile more when you’re teasing me.”
You looked at him. “You really pay attention, huh?”
He shrugged. “Comes with being leader.”
You snorted. “Liar.”
He laughed—soft, real—and for a moment you forgot to breathe.
“You know,” he said, “everyone thinks I’m calm all the time.”
“And you’re not?”
He looked at you then. Really looked.
“Not when it’s you.”
The room felt smaller.
Your voice came out barely above a whisper. “Jungwon…”
He didn’t move closer.
Didn’t touch you.
Just waited.
And somehow that was more romantic than anything else could’ve been.
Because for the first time, you realized—
Yang Jungwon wasn’t just the leader.
Or the short king.
Or the boy who always noticed too much.
He was the one who made space for you to choose him back.
------
The first person to notice was Sunoo.
Which, frankly, surprised no one.
He narrowed his eyes from across the living room as Jungwon handed you a blanket without looking, already knowing you were cold.
“…Okay,” Sunoo said slowly. “Since when do leaders come with boyfriend DLC?”
You choked on your drink.
Jungwon blinked. “What?”
“You,” Sunoo pointed at him, then at you. “You two. Explain.”
“We’re friends,” you said at the same time Jungwon said, “It’s nothing.”
Sunoo leaned back. “That was very synchronized denial.”
Jay looked up from his phone. “Wait. Are we talking about the same Jungwon who used to physically recoil from hand-holding during fanservice?”
Jungwon sighed. “I do not recoil.”
“You flinched,” Ni-ki said. “Once.”
“That was a reflex."
“And now?” Jake asked. “You literally moved so they could sit closer.
You froze. Jungwon glanced at you.
“…I didn’t realize,” he said.
“Liar,” Sunghoon muttered. “You adjusted the cushion.”
The room exploded.
“He adjusted the cushion??”
“Oh he’s GONE gone.”
“Someone write this down.”
Your ears burned. “Can we please talk about something else?”
Jungwon, traitor that he was, smiled. A small one. Fond.
“No,” Sunoo said. “We cannot.”
Later that night, you were in the kitchen when Jungwon appeared beside you, reaching for a glass.
Ni-ki popped up behind the counter like a horror movie jump scare.
“WHY are you alone together.”
You screamed. Jungwon almost dropped the glass.
“We’re getting water,” Jungwon said calmly.
“At 2 a.m.?”
“…Yes.”
Ni-ki squinted. “Suspicious.”
Jungwon handed you the glass first.
Ni-ki gasped. “HE DID IT AGAIN.”
------
The next day was worse.
Jay casually threw an arm around Jungwon during practice. Jungwon stiffened.
“Hyung,” he said flatly, “don’t.”
Jay raised a brow. “Wow. So you don’t like touching anymore?”
Jungwon glanced at you.
Then gently—but very clearly—removed Jay’s arm.
“I just prefer choosing,” he said.
The silence that followed was deafening.
Jake whispered, “Oh my god.”
Sunoo clutched Jay’s sleeve. “We’re witnessing character development.”
Sunghoon nodded solemnly. “Historical.”
The final nail in the coffin came when you tripped during practice.
You didn’t even hit the floor.
Jungwon was there instantly, hands on your arms, voice low.
“You okay?”
“I—yeah.”
He didn’t let go right away.
Didn’t notice the room had stopped breathing.
Sunoo slowly raised his phone. “For legal reasons, this is evidence.”
Jungwon finally looked around.
“…Why is everyone staring?”
Ni-ki grinned. “Because, leader-nim, you are DOWN BAD.”
You laughed, unable to stop it.
Jungwon sighed, rubbing his neck. “I like her,” he said simply. “Is that really so surprising?”
No one spoke.
Then Jay nodded. “Nope. That explains everything.”
Sunoo smiled softly. “You’re cute together.”
Your chest warmed.
Jungwon glanced at you, eyes gentler than ever.
“Is it okay,” he asked quietly, “if I keep being like this?”
